Ohio State University

When I specifically requested Mom to bring a Balinese cloth from Indonesia, it was meant as a farewell gift for Sis S. Because I was about to relocate to another state, more likely than not I'm not going to meet her again.

Until last week.

Pulling herself over to my side, she called me with her affectionate term for me "T-A, I gotta tell you something"

"What?"

"I'm moving"

Silence wrapped me as I was not prepared of how to response.

"Well...where? Why?"

She explained to me the reason behind her moving. It isn't that far. As a matter of fact it's an adjacent town, but still I wouldn't be able to meet her almost everyday like I used to anymore.

"I see", I replied curtly.

"Don't worry, we can still visit each other once in a while"

I said nothing.

Within that split second under the moonlight, she gave me a parting kiss on the cheek.


~~

Okay, I have to admit that the last sentence above was fabricated (the entire conversation actually happened in the office). But irony is caustic.



In the past I oft hated her guts that I wished her to just disappear. Then in the end I realised that after everything that happened, I did miss her quirks and her spontaneities. Working at the office somehow feels so...lonely without her.

Really.

Memorably she went to great lengths to ensure that I, together with some of my coworkers, had a wonderful night on my 21st birthday. It was nothing of a wild party like I had expected before, but the important thing was that we had fun.

I'll always remember that.

~~

Anyway, my apology for the title as it is misleading.

I am not enrolled in Ohio State University (which is two hours drive to the north from where I currently reside), but somewhere closer. I did wanted to enrol there though, as it had been my very first choice. But OSU would be another story.

As of today, I had done everything on the checklist: taking the college entrance test, obtaining my school transcripts from Singapore (which was the most troublesome part since that country is located half a globe away), getting registered for classes, paying tuitions, and applying for financial aid reimbursements.

None of the classes that I am registered for are that much fun actually. I started my registration process in November while the open registration actually started in October 2010, hence most of the "fun" classes with the best schedules are already full by the time I got to meet with the academic advisor.

But it's alright, since I had loved the school from the very first time I enterred its campus building.

Excited? Definitely.

However, Mom had warned me that I had to be physically prepared since I am still going to be working at my current job in a full-time status (40 hours/week), while enrolled in the college as a full-time freshman (±14 hours/week) too by the time my classes start in the first Monday of January 2011. So that would be at least 54 hours of school+work. Kinda arduous I have to say, but I have known a friend -a female friend actually- who works two jobs (40 hours of full-time+16 hours of part-time) while being enrolled as a full-time student, a minimum of 10 hours in classes every week. So that would be translate into an operose 68 hours a week (!!!!!!).



Insane, I know.

It's amazing to see how hard-working some of my American friends are (in direct contrast to that stereotype of fat-and-lazy Americans you see in TV). Which is why I am proud to be following their example.

I don't know how far I can go though. I'll just hope for the best, I guess!

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How litigations affect our daily life

Being a law-abiding (read: law-fearing) country, America does have several lawsuits in the distant past that still affects its citizens until this day.

One personal example I found quaintly annoying was when I came to the next-door pharmacy.

Me: Excuse me sir, do you have any medicine for [disease undisclosed]?
Pharmacist: Let me take a look at that.
Me: [showing the pharmacist my disease, which was quite visible externally]
Pharmacist: I'm afraid you have to consult a physician, sir.
Me: But I want a self-treatment...
Pharmacist: [getting more assertive] You need to see a doctor.
Me: Alright, seeing a doctor it will be then! [BIG SIGH] So is there any first-aid self-treatment that I can use before I....consult the physician?
Pharmacist: Well, you can always use the [medicine undisclosed], but I can't guarantee if..
Me: And where can you find that medicine?
Pharmacist: It's on the bottom of the shelf on the third aisle.
Me: Okay, that's all I need to know, thanks!

When I confided in a friend on how insistent the pharmacist was in recommending me to a doctor, I thought that this annoying chap was thinking of getting some royalty off the doctor concerned (which usually happened in my previous country of residence, Indonesia). But she simply said that the pharmacist was required to insist on customers getting treated by a doctor, lest the disease gets worse, I would not litigate the pharmacy.

Worthy of note, this occured during the very last days of September this year (and Mom hadn't departed to America yet) which unfortunately ruined any dates, weekly swims, planned moviegoings, and whatever else that a 20-year-old male was supposed to do during his Summer.

But shit misfortune happens, eh?



Anyway, back to the topic.

So it came to my attention that janitors also carry a large possibility of being sued against. The logic is simple: If the floor was too slippery and someone falls on the floor, the janitor of that shift carries a large portion of the responsibility for the punitive damages that may ensue.

One of the most oft-cited examples is the Liebeck v. McDonald's case where Stella Liebeck of New Mexico burned herself after accidentally spilling coffee on her body. She suffered third-degree burn and sued McDonald's for it and won.

A moral story for McDonald's not to serve hot drinks? Not exactly.

The lesser-known result of the litigation was that the reason Liebeck spilled the cup was neither her nor McDonald's fault, but the lack of cup-holder in her car. The dashboard was slightly slanted while she had nowhere else to put her cup on, hence the spill.

Fearing similar litigations towards automobile manufacturers, the company which produced her car, together with almost all other private car manufacturers in the States, began placing cup-holders in between both the driver's and the front passenger's seat from that year onwards.



But it does not stop there.

Scald-and-burn lawsuits such as Liebeck's had become quite commonplace that most public buildings (such as libraries, churches or museums) decided to get away with hot water altogether.

Thus, instead of having two choices of "water temperature" in the restroom sink, only one remains: Cold water.

It would always be pleasant if you could rinse your hands (and soak your face) with a warm water after a gelid Winter day, but the choice is gone whenever I want to sanitize my hands on the library's Gent's.

Thank heavens most privately-owned buildings (such as hotels or restaurants) have not followed suit.

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The first picture ever taken of *toshi

Being semi-anonymous, I don't normally post my own portrait on my blog.

Except for today.




If Mom was right, this was taken when I was 1 day old (November 1989).

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I know I voted for Obama, but...

In retrospect, Hillary Clinton would have made a better president.

And with a lot of domestic sentiments stirring high against Obama, one could not help but wonder how he is practically worshipped once he leaves the US territory.



Barack Obama would be better off as the Secretary of State, I say.

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The Post-Adolescent, Pre-Adult, Not-Quite Decided Life Stage

Such is the title of an article by Robin Marantz Henig in 22 August 2010 edition of The New York Times Magazine. Sums up what it means to be 21, methinks.

Now what have I achieved so far during the 365 days leading to my 21st year?

Frankly, not much:

1. I haven't got a girlfriend yet. Contrary to my age-old image of being the boy too shy to talk to girls, I am no longer reluctant to express my feelings upon anyone I have a crush on. If I think she's pretty or witty, I say it upfront: no poems made, no mooning around. I have not dated anybody purely due to economical reasons. To date a girl in America simply costs too much.

2. I am quite eloquent in French. Though my Japanese remains somewhat constant, if not degraded.

3. Before my mother came to USA, I spoke Indonesian only twice. The past year before my mother came, I probably spoke less Indonesian than Obama's Jakarta speech altogether. And those two occasions were the times when I had Indonesian customers coming in from Columbus, Ohio (which is the only city nearby that has a significant Indonesian community).

4. I tried having...oh well, never mind. I only did it once though!

5. I have not enrolled in any tertiary institutions. Though this is about to change soon.



Other than that, everything else remains in situ.

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